Guidelines for Workshop Organisers

Ideally, the Women’s Committee workshop would promote women’s careers in Economic History; consider women’s history, and provide feminist perspectives on historical topics. In practice, some compromise may be necessary.

Early career researchers should be encouraged to organise workshops and to be speakers. Some leeway should be given regarding the other aims of the workshop.

1. DateOne day workshop usually held on a Saturday in November.

2. Funds available from EHSUsually c. £1000. If costs appear to be going over that budget, then contact the EHS Treasurer. Workshops usually make a loss. Sometimes other organisations provide funds or resources for the workshop. Permission does not have to be sought from the EHS for this, within reason. To claim funds from the EHS, provide a spreadsheet with a breakdown of income and expenditure, together with receipts for the monies being claimed. Email the spreadsheet to the Treasurer and send the receipts.

3. Registration feesRates in 2012:£25 for non-members of EHS, £20 for members of the EHS, £15 unwaged and 10 free places for postgraduates on a first-come first-served basis. Retain general price structure with four categories, even if making changes to the pricing plan

4. ParticipantsMen are allowed to attend and to be speakers. Priority should be given to women for free postgraduate places and as speakers, ceteris paribus. Ideally, the speakers should be female but the committee recognises that this is not always possible. Male speakers should only be invited because of the contribution they can make to the workshop, not simply to fill space. Otherwise early career women should be invited or female speakers who work in a slightly different area to the main topic.

5. LocationThe IHR in London is a favourite location. Regional locations should also be considered. Transport links and accommodation should be taken into account when choosing a location. Organisers should consider the option of organising a meal for the night before a regional workshop, if people will be travelling far.

6. SpeakersSpeakers do not pay registration fees. Their travel and accommodation costs will be met by the EHS (within reason).

7. RefreshmentsTeas, coffees, a buffet lunch and drinks (including wine) should be provided. Ask attendees, in advance, if they have special dietary requirements (on booking form).

8. Evening mealThe organiser should book a table for attendees to go out to dinner after the workshop. Diners pay their own way. If the organiser cannot go out in the evening, then she should find someone else to take the group.

9. ProgrammeExamples of programmes can be found on the website. Draft programmes should be made available for circulation ASAP. The EHS logo is available from the Women’s Committee or Maureen Galbraith. A flier will be needed for the Economic History Review. It must be sent to Maureen 8-10 weeks before the date of the Review. The Review appears in February, May, August and November. Usually, a flier would appear in the May issue and an updated one in the August issue. The flier should include a booking form section.

10. PromotionThe workshop should be promoted on the EHS website, on the Women’s Committee Facebook page and Jisclist, and on Conference alerts website. You can ask the Chair to do this if you wish as we have various accounts set up. Other sites, such as EH.Net may also be of use. Contact the Chair or Secretary with updates.

11. PublicityCompleted papers should be forwarded, where possible, to the EHS’s publicist, Romesh Vaitiligam (romesh@vaitilingam.com). Romesh’s details are available from the Women’s Committee or Maureen Galbraith. He can give detailed instructions regarding press releases and dealing with the media.

If complete papers are not available (which is quite likely), then ask the speakers to write a press briefing.

Romesh’s guidelines (edited version):

A press release should not be the abstract of a scholarly paper. It should be no longer than 600 words and ideally printed on two sides of a single sheet of paper. At the end, you should list your contact details: numbers, your email address, and your website if it is possible to get further details on the work from there.

Begin with a catchy headline and general statement that sums up the main finding.Distil into three or four points the essence of your research.Back up these points with facts and figures.Add a conclusion that outlines the main policy implications or the 'way forward'.Try to be concrete and specific. Use clear and concise English.Don't qualify or hedge your results any more than is necessary.

Remember that you should work from 'top to bottom'. Start with the most important and interesting points and work your way down. If you took away all the paragraphs except the first, the press release should still make sense. For press releases, you should, in effect, think how to turn your writing upside down. One of the most effective ways to do this is to imagine that you are explaining your work to someone who isn't familiar with either the technical aspects or 'the literature' of your discipline.

12. TwitterIf you are a Twitter user, please use a hashtag consisting of WComEHS with the last two digits of the current year (e.g. #WComEHS13 for events in 2013). Even if you are not a Twitter user, please add the hashtag to the flier.

13. Other itemsRemember the usual: name badges, signs at the venue, appropriate technology (e.g. Powerpoint), and water for the speakers. Make sure that there is someone to chair the papers.